My Love; My Life: Slipping Through My Fingers

Nightmare

Setting: Galveston Texas; Cooper house, Bailey & Georgie's bedroom-November 1979...

"HUH!" A four year old Bay wakes with a gasp as she snaps upward in her bed

"Again?" A four year old Georgie groans tiredly as they turn over to face each other

"Yeah," she heavily sighs out

"The same?"

"Ttthe gal with...her man-blackout...little girl-ball-road," she sums it all up in short phrases as as she tries to calm down, "cccar-blackout...grown ups-with kids...so-so much change...dddarkness...cccrrrreeeeepppppyyyy ooold ggguy...ssstrange-unusual-pplllaaaaccceee...mmmiiiisserrrryyy...blackout...bbbbright lllight."

"Yeah want me ta get mom n dad?"

"..." she shakes her head no

"Want me ta join ya in yer bed?"

"..." she shakes her no

"Y'all in mine?"

    Without hesitation she takes up the offer, hurries out of bed, scurries over into his & snuggles up to him as he puts a protective arm around her...

"Do the charm?"

"Mm," he groans but nods before reciting the charm he thinks he made up a year prior, "now I way me bound ta sweep, ask da sword my wife ta keep. If I'm died befowe I wake, I ask my soul da wings do take. Now I way me bound ta west, ask my soul da sod do guess, if I'm woked befowe fwy, I ask my sister do soar high."
(Rough Translation for those whom may need it: Now I lay me down to sleep, I pray the lord my life does keep, if I die before I wake, I pray the angels my soul does take. Now I lay me down to rest, I pray the lord my souls do bless. If I should pass before I wake, may an Angel my souls the lord do make.)

"Thank you."

"Go ta sweep."

     For as long as a Bay could recall, she's had the same reoccurring nightmare & there wasn't anything anyone could've done to help her; the nightmare was endless for her sleep. Whether it's night or day, if Bay fell asleep, she would ALWAYS wake in a cold sweat every few hours & wake Georgie along with her-causing them to have constant dark circles. But since Georgie 'made up' that 'charm', they started sleeping through half the night instead of little to none, but still lacking their sleep & keeping the dark circles under their eyes. These facts in mind, there still wasn't anything Mary & George could do for Bay as their marriage was still new & they couldn't afford therapy for her on their current carefully budgeted living. So instead, in order to help her brother get more sleep, she slowly but surely taught herself how not wake him up when she did & a number of nights later...

"!" Bay snaps in her bed in a cold sweat but manages not to make a sound or wake Georgie

"..." not a stir comes from Georgie's bed when she looks over to see

"Huh," she quietly lets out a sigh of relief

"Get over here," his tired mumbling voice suddenly comes-causing her to jump slightly

"Hhhow-"

"Y'all can train yerself ta TRY notta wake me up all ya want," he groans out as he turns over into bed to face her, "but I can feel what y'all feel," he tells her with a yawn, "I ain't able ta see what y'all dream," he adds in, "but I can still feel the effects it has on ya."

"Oh," she says quietly

"Now get over ere dummy," he tells her again, "otherwise I'm crawlin inta yer bed."

"Nooooo," she moans, "I don't want yer cooties in my bed!"

"But I gotta deal with you n yers in mine?" He sigh dully, "now can ya stop arguin with me n just get over ere already so I can get back ta sleep fer however long you do."